The Phantom had grown accustomed to the gloom and the loneliness that came with living him the sewers and haunting the Opera House. His eyes had grown used to the dark, his body lithe and almost weightless out of a need to avoid detection, and his mind had grown sharp and quick to spot corners and spaces that were large enough to hide potential infiltrators who sought him out.
Which is, of course why he was shocked when someone popped out of a small chest he had deemed 'too small to harbor a person'. Muscle memory quickly took control, and the Phantom grabbed the lasso from its spot around his waist and threw it at the moving figure before his mind could process what he was seeing. The lasso fell ineffectually on top of the small boy who had tumbled out of the chest face-first, belly flopping out onto the floor amongst a pile of gaudish costumes. The Phantom froze in place and stared at the cherubic boy. He had a head of flaxen hair, a round, glowing face, wide, innocent blue eyes with long lashed, and a rosebud mouth spread wide in a smile. It had been so long since the Phantom had seen a child – no one brought children to an Opera House. He took a faltering step back as the memory of cruel laughter filled his ears and the images of children laughing and pointing wavered in his view. He quickly blinked, and soon enough, the memories faded, leaving him staring at the small boy, who had moved closer and was now staring right up at him. The Phantom had no idea what to do with the boy – he had seen him – but the boy looked so young and as yet uncorrupted by the world's evil. It wasn't as if anyone would believe a mere child's tale of a mysterious man. But – the Phantom felt a tug on the leg of his pants, and focused his gaze down into a pair of wide blue eyes.
"Will you play with me?" the boy asked in a clear high tone, cocking his head to the side pleadingly.
"Uhh…." The Phantom stuttered, staring. "Wh-" he cleared his throat, voice rough with disuse "What do you want."
The boy's face brightened and he seemed to accept the Phantom's words as an agreement (despite the scowl the Phantom was wearing); it broke out into a wide grin that revealed a large gap in the top row of his teeth.
Swiftly, the boy grabbed the Phantom's hand and dragged him down the hall and into a large props room. The Phantom let himself be pulled along, down the hall, glancing down at his hand, which nearly engulfed the boy's small, soft, and slightly sticky hand.
The boy dropped his hand and waved emphatically at a mostly completed wooden and cloth elephant that stood nearly 10 feet tall and took up a great deal of the room. The boy stutters proudly, "This an elly-fint and it's gonna be in this play called Hann-hann-handball-"
"Hannibal" The Phantom corrected automatically, then froze.
The boy paused and tilted his head slightly before breaking into a toothy grin again "you're smart Mister! In Hannibal" he said the name with notable care "That they gonna start perf-performing in a couple monfs." The boy beamed, clearly proud to have remembered everything.
The Phantom frowned in thought – clearly the boy belonged to someone from around the theatre (they weren't even advertising for Hannibal yet), but he should have no way of getting to the theatre on his own, so his family should still be here…. He glanced up, then did a double take "Boy! Where did you go?!"
The Phantom heard a giggle from the opposite side of the elephant and he walked around just in time to spot the boy pulling himself on top of the prop with a laugh.
"I'm King o'da WORLD!" The boy exclaimed in excitement, standing up, wobbling precariously, and waving his arms.
"For heaven's sake" The Phantom muttered under his breath – children were clearly menaces and dangers to their own health. Raising his voice to the boy he commanded "Get down from there this instant! It's not safe for you up there and the elephant isn't finished!"
The young boy pouted, but started to obey the order, grabbing the elephant's 'fur' and scrabbling his feet against the side. He hung there for a second before rolling back onto the top of the elephant.
The boy started looking unsure, and his lower lip began to wobble "I c-can't get down" he whispered.
The Phantom gave an exasperated sigh "Okay, just say calm and – Stop That!" he snapped the last bit as the boy got up and began walking up and down the elephant's back.
He paused in his pacing and suddenly there was a terrible cracking noise and a desperate shriek echoed around the small room. The Phantom watched in shock and worry as the boy's foot punched a hole in the top of the elephant, and he stumbled and slipped off the side, grabbing wildly in an effort to halt his fall. The world seemed to slow down, and almost without thinking, the Phantom took several steps forward and caught the boy, cradling him in his arms. Bright, dewy eyes blinked up at him in shock, and the Phantom braced himself for a barrage of tears.
"Wooooooow! You saved my life" breathed the boy, before throwing his arms around the Phantom's neck and squeezing in the tightest hug his weak arms could muster. The Phantom froze as the gentle scent of strawberries, vanilla, and sunshine found his nose, and the boy's hair brushed softly over his cheek. He wasn't sure what he should be doing – returning the hug or putting the boy down and running as far away as possible. Before he could make up his mind, the boy pulled back, beaming again.
"You saved me! You're so cool! You're like…. a masked vig-viggy-lantte!" The boy's eyes suddenly grew wide "Oh gosh, you are a masked viggi – uh – hero, right, right? That's why you wear a cool mask and a cape! Like Zorro! Can you ride a horse? Do you fight bad guys? Do you have a rap-rapy-rapier? Can I have a mask like yours? Do you need a sidekick? Do all masked heroes live in opera houses? Do-"
The Phantom tuned out the boy's babble, opting to sit him on the stairs off to the side and kneel by his side, examining the foot that had broken through the elephant. "Your foot should be fine," he stated, interrupting the boy's jabber "And make no mistake – I am no hero."
The boy quieted, and the Phantom looked around with a sigh before kneeling to the boy's eyelevel again "Where are your parents?"
"My dad is a pat-pat-pastry of the arts – "
"Patron of the arts" he corrected, earning a small smile from the boy.
"Patron of the arts, and he's busy talking to 'portant, boring people. My daddy is the best. He's really smart, and cool, and 'portant people always wanna talk to him." the boy said, puffing out his chest proudly.
"And your mother?" the Phantom prompted.
"She's got a 'portant meeting to go to and Daddy's s'posed to look after me. Daddy said us men gotta let women have their own time to do stuff, and that we wouldn't want to go anyway."
"And your name?"
"Raoul. R – A – O – U – L " the boy proclaimed "What's yours?"
The Phantom paused – a name – it had been a long time since anyone had used his – but it wasn't like he would ever see this boy again….. "You can just call me 'Opera Ghost'" he stated brusquely.
Raoul's eyes widened and he mumbled "cool…. code names…"
Suddenly, from down the hall a man's voice called out "Raoul? Raoul? Where have you run off to this time?"
Raoul's face lit up, and he turned towards the voice like a plant towards the sun, calling "Daddy!"
The Phantom backed away gracefully, fading into the shadows as an older man with frown lines, a black suit, and top hat came striding into the room, causing Raoul to leap to his feet.
"Daddy, daddy!" Raoul exclaimed "Do you see the elephant?! Isn't it cool?! Can I come here with you every day?"
The man frowned at the boy clinging to his pants leg "Raoul, cease and desist – it is not dignified to cling to other people" he snapped "and how did you get so filthy? I don't want you running all over the place while I'm trying to conduct business."
"But Daddy – I rode an elephant and met a Ghost and – "
"Raoul de Chagny!" the man snapped loudly, then pinched the bridge of his nose before continuing in a firm but quieter tone "Raoul, I understand that you have a very active imagination that your mother encourages, however while you are with me, I must insist that this nonsense be put to an end!"
"Yes Father" Raoul said quietly, a look of chagrin on his face "I only want to please you."
The father (who the Phantom gathered to be the Viscomte de Chagny) led Raoul from the room without a backward glance. And the Phantom returned to his sewers.